


Cats And Cloaks And Foxes, Oh My!

by DigitalThespian



Series: Permutations [3]
Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: Character Study, Exploration, F/M, Fluff, Getting Together, Pets, Planning Adventures, Time Loop
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:15:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28307376
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DigitalThespian/pseuds/DigitalThespian
Summary: Kaleb spends some quality time with his cat, and his favorite tailor.There's only one tailor? Oh.Well, she's still his favorite.
Relationships: Emily/Male Player (Stardew Valley)
Series: Permutations [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2073213
Kudos: 4





	Cats And Cloaks And Foxes, Oh My!

**Author's Note:**

> Have some fluff after that last one!
> 
> As always, let me know if I missed any tags!

"Abigail? What—"

"Oh, man, I didn't expect to be met at the bus stop like this, you guys are really living up to the 'friendly small town' stereotype, and I'm into it." Kaleb hopped off the bus, grinning widely.

This was impossible. He was _dead_. _She_ found his body, she _buried_ him.

But there he was.

Abigail smiled back. "It's not every day we get someone new here in Pelican Town!" She held out a hand, and he shook it. "I'm Abigail! My dad runs the general store here in town, so you'll probably see me around a lot. I look forward to getting to know you!"

Robin was floored. Abigail shouldn't be here either, she avoided Kaleb like the plague, so why—

What.. What if she remembered too? What if.. what if she had avoided him because she remembered _then_?

It suddenly made all too much sense why she'd locked herself in her room the way she had. She didn't _dislike_ the farmer, she wasn't _afraid_ of him.. In all likelihood..

She _loved_ him. And then..

"I look forward to getting to know you too!" She blinked back to the present.

"And I'm Robin, I'm the town carpenter! I can help you out with anything that needs fixing on your house; just let me know!"

"I will! Well, I'm gonna be off, I wanna get settled in and actually get a decent night's sleep; long day ahead of me tomorrow!"

"We'll walk you there; want me to take some of that?" Abigail gestured to one of his suitcases.

He looked pleasantly surprised. "Well, I can't say no to that."

The three walked to the farmhouse, and met Lewis, almost exactly as before, except with the occasional quip from Abigail. He went inside, and Abigail turned to her. "Well, I've got to get going, I— _whoa_!"

Robin threw her arms around Abigail, holding her tightly, unable to stop the tears. "Abigail, he's.. He's _alive_."

She felt Abigail gasp. "You Remember too?!"

"You.. You loved him, didn't you? That's why you were so distant at first, and why.."

"..Why I was so devastated. Yeah. The first day of that loop was.. supposed to be our wedding."

"Oh, _god_ , Abigail, I'm so _sorry_."

"You're here, and that will make this infinitely easier, believe me. Just having someone I can talk to about all this."

"He seems happier this time. A lot happier."

"..Yeah."

* * *

Emily sighed quietly to herself. Her shift at the saloon was ending, and Kaleb hadn't been by before it, either. Had he forgotten her birthday? But he'd remembered to get everyone else in town something since he'd moved here, and it was almost always something they adored..

She walked outside, taking a deep breath. At least it was nice out; small blessings. So maybe he wasn't interested in interacting with her very much beyond when he was at the saloon; that's alright, she was 'weird' to a lot of people, and she was okay with that.

..she had just hoped he wasn't one of those people. She began to walk towards home, taking in the stillness of Pelican Town this late at night. The gentle breeze rustling through the trees, the stars in the sky, still visible due to how little electric lighting there was outside here. The rhythmic pounding of footsteps on the cobblestones—

—Wait a minute. She turned towards the noise, and her eyes widened; it was Kaleb, heading her way at full tilt, face streaked with dirt—wait, was that _blood_?! He skidded to a halt in front of her, panting, with one hand on a knee for support. "Thank god I caught you." He recovered a little, smiling sheepishly. "I was in the mines; here, this is for you." He held out a beautiful amethyst cluster.

"Did you go to all that trouble to get me this..?" She took it slowly, staring at it in wonder. "Kaleb, thank you so much!"

"Yeah, of course! It's your birthday, I couldn't _not_ get you something nice." He swayed on his feet slightly. "Oh boy, I need to go home before I _drop_."

"Kaleb! Take care of yourself! I appreciate the gift, I really do, but you didn't have to endanger yourself for.. me."

"Shh, none of that; I wanted to get you something nice and by god I was going to. You've been really wonderful to me, and I wanted to show that I appreciate you."

She was sure she was blushing like crazy. "Oh, uh.. I definitely feel appreciated." She nodded quickly.

"Alright, I'm gonna go to bed, but I'll see you around!" He jogged away, and she stared vacantly after him.

"..Night!" She called after a moment. She held the crystal to her chest, a steadily rising blush on her face.

..he remembered. Not only that, he went to a _lot_ of trouble.. for her. The weird girl.

She abruptly turned towards her house. She needed to make sure he knew just how much this meant to her.. and that she expressed her feelings—for there was no denying them any longer, not after _that_ —before anyone else won his heart.

* * *

Emily sighed dreamily, and Leah raised an eyebrow. "What's got _you_ on cloud nine?"

"Huh?!" Emily bolted upright. "Uh, you know, just, destiny, and stuff."

"You don't sound so sure, which is itself sort of unusual; I think you're thinking about that new farmer, aren't you?"

"W-What makes you think that?!"

"Well, you've been staring at him all night."

"I-I have!? Shoot." Emily looked down with a blush. "Fine, I think he's cute, and a few days ago he caught me after my shift on my birthday to give me an amethyst cluster the size of a grapefruit, that he'd gone into the mines to get. It was really sweet, and I had been worried he'd forgotten, but no, he was just busy _fighting monsters_ to get me a birthday present for the first half of the day."

"Oh wow, that's.. yeah, okay, that sigh earlier was entirely warranted."

"Right? He's just.. he's so mysterious, but so _present_? He's a very complex person, but he's not distant or inaccessible."

"Also he has a really cute butt."

" _Leah_!"

"What? I'm right, aren't I?"

"I mean, yes, but that's rude!"

"How? If I didn't think it would send mixed signals to the town, I'm willing to bet I could yell that across the room at him and he'd just laugh and say 'thanks'."

"..Okay, you may have a point there."

"Oh! Here he comes!"

"Eep..!"

Leah leaned casually on the bar, looking for all the world like she hadn't just been checking the farmer out. Emily, however, was bright red.

Kaleb walked over and plopped down on a barstool. "Move over Sebastian, you ain't the only pool shark in town anymore."

"Did you _beat Sebastian_?" Leah was incredulous.

"No, but it was close. It helps that we're playing a game I introduced him to, and Sam being in the game actually works in my favor."

"So if you played the usual way, how would you do?"

"I'd probably lose, but I wouldn't get destroyed like Sam does."

"Oof, harsh."

"The poor boy loses with like, five of his seven left almost every time. I don't know what else to call it."

"So you'd have what, one or two?"

"Two or three, I'd say. One if I had a really good game." He looked at Emily. "Hey, are you alright? You've been kinda quiet, and your face is pretty red; maybe get some water? I dunno if it'll help, but it's my go-to first thing to try."

"Y-Yeah, you're right." She moved to get herself something to drink, internally kicking herself. _Get it together! You can't let your energy get out of balance like this!_

Leah, meanwhile, just looked at Kaleb with a completely straight face. "So; what brings a guy like you to a town like this?"

He raised an eyebrow. "A guy like me?"

"Yeah, you know; handsome, charming, talented."

He snorted. "Oh yeah; you definitely want something."

She blinked. "I'm sorry?"

"People don't say stuff like that unless they want something. Sometimes the thing they want is _you_ , but they still want something. The only time a person doesn't want something is when they're dead."

"Oh yeah? So what do you want?"

"Relief from the endless existential nightmare that is mental illness, uh.. a sense of fulfillment, community, belonging; I could go on, but I've made my point in that what you said and what you were getting at were not the same thing."

"Are you always like this?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"I.. see."

"So who's your friend?"

"Who, Emily?"

"No, blond Mr. Darcy."

"Oh my god I'm telling him you said that he'd _love_ it."

"Go nuts."

Emily came back, having calmed down. "Sorry about that! I feel much better; thanks! So, what can I get for you?"

"Do you have anything local that's not an IPA?"

"Sure do!"

"Perfect. Dark ale if you've got it, otherwise lager, otherwise surprise me."

"Can do! Be right back!"

Leah looked at him curiously. "Craft beer kinda guy, huh?"

"Used to be; now I just have vague preferences and I'm not shy about asking for what I want at any given time. Provided there's no risk-taking involved; I don't do so hot with risk. Both the concept and the board game."

Leah snorted, letting out an undignified laugh. "Oh my god, you just never stop, do you? How do you _do_ it?"

"No, not really. I just say whatever comes to mind and hope for the best, honestly. Like I said to Emily the other day; people are either gonna like me, or they're not, and hiding who I am to change that is only delaying the inevitable and wasting _everyone's_ time."

"Whoa, you two talk about some serious stuff, huh?"

"It's.. mostly me, she just hasn't told me to shut up yet, so I've rambled at her a lot."

"..It's really weird talking to someone who's so candid about things the way you are."

"I get that a lot. That's the third time you've said something like that this conversation; I've either really got you on the back foot, or you want to talk to me but have no idea how without 'making it weird'."

"Okay, _that's_ scary."

"Nailed it. Siddown, have a drink. That's the thing about me; you can't make it weird. If I don't like something I'll say so, and that'll probably be the end of it."

"..Okay. Sure."

She hopped on the seat next to him right as Emily came back with his beer. "One red ale, for the up and coming pool shark."

He chuckled. "Thanks. Cheers." He raised the glass, taking a long drink. "Mm; that's good stuff."

"Hey, I was wondering; you've mentioned the name Tybalt a few times, is he your little brother?" He nearly spit out his beer laughing, and Emily pouted. "It was an honest question, don't laugh at me!"

"No, no, it's—he's my cat, so I'm laughing at the fact that I love my cat so much people think I'm talking about a human family member, it's just a funny idea."

"That's.. _adorable_." Leah exchanged a subtle glance with Emily, who nodded in agreement.

"Can I come meet him sometime?"

"Oh, heck yeah you can! I'm always down to brag about how great my cat is."

Emily beamed. "Great! When works for you?"

"Well, I just planted my next crop, so I've got like.. four days minimum before anything'll be ready. If you wanted to come over in the morning sometime between like, six and nine am, I'll just be watering stuff; that'd be a pretty good time to chat and pet Tybalt."

"Sounds good to me!"

He nodded with a smile. "It was great chatting, but I gotta get back over there; okay, I don't _have_ to, but playing pool is fun, and I don't really get many chances."

"It's alright; don't be a stranger, okay?"

"I'll try, but I've met stranger." He waved over his shoulder as he left.

Leah pouted after the farmer left. "Man, and I was just starting to get him to talk to me."

Emily shrugged. "Sorry, not sorry."

Leah did a double take. "Whoa, where'd that come from?"

"I don't know what you mean, Leah; I'm only chasing what I want. Isn't that all I've ever done?"

"I meant the mood shift from earlier to now!"

"You reminded me that he's very easygoing. And I only asked to meet his cat, it's not exactly a high-stakes event."

* * *

Kaleb strode down the rows, making sure everything was watered evenly with a sort of absent focus; he was paying attention, but if you asked him to recount the experience you'd be out of luck.

"Kaleb!"

" _Wagh!_ " He started, nearly launching the watering can out of his hands; instead, he merely launched the water. 

..All over himself.

Emily clapped a hand over her mouth. "Oh gosh, I'm so sorry!"

Kaleb was quiet a moment, then he began to laugh. "Ugh, why am I like this, I _knew_ you were coming.." He shook his head with a smile. "Let me go change."

He walked past, pointing around the corner of the farmhouse. "Tybalt's over there, little grey kitty with faint reddish streaks. I call it his coat of arms."

He didn't stop walking during this, leaving a very confused—and somewhat red-faced—Emily in his wake. " _..That's so **cute** ,_" she murmured, then walked over, giggling when she saw Tybalt laying on the ground with all four legs splayed behind him, like a human would if they were lying on their stomach. "Hey there Tybalt, I'm Emily!"

Tybalt looked over. "Mrrrow." He got up and plodded over with none of the grace one might expect of a cat, and then flopped right back down on his side on Emily's feet. "Mrow."

"Ah, I see you two get along well."

She looked at him with wide eyes. " _I love him."_

He smiled at Tybalt. "I do too. He is my son and he's a furry little _shit_ and he's the best part of my life, hands down." She knelt down, gently picking him up. "That might not go wel—"

She stood, cradling him and scratching him under the chin. Kaleb could hear the purr even from as far away as he was. "Oh, he's such a pretty boy! _Very_ royal."

"Wow, he never lets anyone but me pick him up—or Marnie, since she brought him to me; bless that woman, I will owe her _forever_ for that."

"Really? But he's so sweet!"

"I guess you're just a soothing presence."

"Aw, thanks. I try, everyone needs a little kindness now and then, and since so many people are mean, I just have to be kind enough for all of us."

"..I can get behind that. Not too dissimilar from my own philosophy, honestly. It works for you; I certainly always feel better after talking to you." He turned and waved for her to follow. "I gotta finish watering, but since he's letting you hold him you can just bring him along so we don't have to yell and disturb my poor boy."

* * *

"Hey, Kaleb."

He turned, smiling when he saw Emily. "Hey, Em; what's up?"

"It's.. well, it's your birthday, right? I got you something."

"You.. remembered my birthday. Gosh, I.. thank you so much."

She frowned. "I haven't even given you the present yet; did no one else remember?! How awful of them! And after you go to so much trouble!" She held out a box. "Here, I made this for you."

He took it, smiling warmly. "An Emily original; I'm honored." He opened the box, taking out a strangely shaped fabric.. thing. It was mostly grey; but on the largest face there was an embroidered cat rendered in a gorgeous dark red, lying down with a crown on its head. There was also a gold fox standing behind the cat, curled protectively around it, teeth bared. "Oh my god this is an actual coat of arms for Tybalt and I."

"..do you like it?" She shifted nervously.

Kaleb carefully put it in the box, and set the box on the edge of the porch. "Emily, may I hug you?"

"Yes! I would be delighted." He threw his arms around her tightly, rocking her back and forth. "Oh gosh!"

"I _love_ it, thank you _so much_ ; I never even would have _thought_ to want something like that but now that I have it I can't see it being any other way." He continued to hold on, and her face began to redden at the prolonged intimacy. Matters were _not_ being helped by him murmuring his thanks in her ear in that adorably heartfelt voice. "Thank you for taking the time to really know me.. and thanks for loving my furry boy."

"..He deserves _all_ the love." Emily tried to keep the tremor out of her voice, but Kaleb still noticed, springing away.

"Oh god, I'm so sorry, I'm just very huggy, it's a Buss family thing."

"N-No, it's okay! Really! You can hug me if you want, I like it." She smiled, hiding her disappointment at the loss of contact.

"Oh, uh.. alright!" He smiled. "I've noticed it getting colder lately; your cheeks are turning red, you wanna come inside to warm up a bit?"

"I'd.. I'd love to!"

He picked up the box and led her inside, taking off his shoes as he went. He called back from the kitchen. "Hot cocoa or hot cider?"

"Uh." She hesitated. Should she take _her_ shoes off? Did he expect her to stay that long?

"Oh, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have just assumed you were staying past just warming up."

"Cider!" She chirped. "Sorry, I was thinking." She took her shoes off, settling on the couch—sized for two, she noted. She felt a sort of guilty anticipation about it; he was just being nice, and here she was feeling giddy about getting to sit pressed against him.

"Coming right up! You need a blanket?"

"I'm okay! You're secretly the mother hen type aren't you?"

"Guilty. I like making people feel comfortable and happy."

"Well, we can sit with our hot drinks and that will certainly make me both of those things."

"Awesome!" He walked over, handing her a mug that read 'Big Hug Mug', and she giggled. "Oh, yeah, that actually used to be my all-time favorite mug; it's this one, now," he raised his mug for a moment—it was fired clay with a fancy lion on it; Emily made a note to ask about it later. "but that's a close second. Plus you said I could hug you, so.. _theming_."

"I definitely like it. It's very you."

He smiled. "Thank you! So, tell me about Tybalt's coat of arms. Any reasons behind what you went with, or just going for style?" He settled next to her, opening the box and scooting over so they could both see the garment.

She felt a warmth in her heart that she was fairly sure had nothing to do with the cider. "Well, Italy had few official rules about coats of arms with respect to heraldry, so I just went with what felt right! Tybalt is Italian, right?"

"It _is_ in Romeo and Juliet, but he's technically named after the actual character Mercutio is making fun of Tybalt for being named after, the Prince of Cats. So I guess it's kind of a weird mix of Latin, Dutch, German, English, and French? The work is the Reynard cycle—as in Reynard the Fox—from like, the 12th century, so it's hard to track."

"Oh! Then I'm especially glad I included the fox, I just remember you saying foxes were kind of your thing."

"Yeah, this is _perfect_ , honestly."

"Kaleb the fox; and his son, the cat prince."

He grinned. "Damn straight." His expression softened. "Really. Thank you so much; this means the _world_ to me."

"..of course, it's your birthday. You deserve to be happy, and I _want_ you to be happy." Her stomach growled, and she grimaced. "Oof, that was unpleasant.."

"You okay?"

"It.. should be fine..?"

* * *

"Hey, Emily."

"Oh! Hey Kaleb! How's it going!"

"Pretty well."

He seemed uncharacteristically nervous, and Emily furrowed her brow in concern. "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, I'm just nervous, and I remember saying once that I'm always nervous and you were like 'mm; sure, as if,' but way nicer, and so I'm not bothering to hide it as like a 'see I also do this I just usually don't care' kinda thing, but this time I do, because I actually _care_ about _your_ opinion of me."

This was news to Emily, and she felt her face flush slightly. "Oh, wow."

"Yeah I ramble, sorry, anyway, I got you this." He unslung his backpack and pulled out a bolt of fabric. "I remember you saying you were running low on wool, and then you made me that really nice pair of like, boot-lining socks? Oversocks? I dunno what to call them, but they're _great_ , anyway, uh, I felt bad that you used some of what little wool you had left, so I—" He cut off, sighing.

"That's very sweet of you, Kaleb." She smiled warmly.

"Yeah, I—" He sighed again, looking down. "Sorry, that was a defensive lie. Old habits die hard, I guess."

Emily tilted her head, confusion crossing her features for a moment. " _Why_?"

"..I got it for you because I thought it would make you happy, and I wanted to do something nice for you. I'm just.. really used to not letting on that I have feelings, like, at all, and especially not ones that could potentially be used against me—not that you would, that's not why, it's just a really old defense mechanism, I guess."

"Kaleb?"

He didn't look up. "..Yeah?"

"Will you look at me?" He finally looked up, and immediately blushed at the expression of joy on Emily's face. " _Thank_ you. You're right, I love it, and it does make me very happy. But you know what makes me even happier?" He looked at her nervously. "It makes me happy that you told me. I appreciated it before, but it makes me so pleased that you feel like you don't have to hide with me. Because you don't, Kaleb. You're sweet, and you're funny; and yes, _some_ times you're a huge dick, but I like you anyway."

He barked out a laugh. "Honestly? Thanks, Em."

* * *

"I.. got these for you." Emily shyly held out a bouquet.

Kaleb smiled, completely unaware of the meaning behind them, and took them happily. "They're lovely."

She dashed forwards, throwing her arms around him, and he startled a moment before hugging her back. "I'm so happy..!"

"I'm glad; It makes me happy to see you happy."

Emily pulled away, blushing. "Well.. I know you have things to do, but.. do you maybe want to do something later?"

"That sounds great! What did you have in mind?"

* * *

Emily leaned against his shoulder, and he suppressed a shiver. He wasn't sure why she had suddenly become so much more affectionate, but he was _not_ going to complain. She made him a little cloak for his cat, complete with a coat of arms for their little cat-human family unit; as far as he was concerned, his heart belonged to her.

A movie played on the TV; one he had watched with Abigail in the first loop, and one he was likely to show everyone eventually. Emily laughed. "Oh my god he's wearing that guy's outfit! And the _boots_!"

"Just plunks 'em right up on that bastard's desk."

"He sounds so _different_!"

"Don Cheadle's such a good actor."

She snuggled closer, looping an arm through his.

..If she kept being cute like this he was sure his heart was going to give out.

* * *

"Hey!" Emily bounded over, falling into step beside him and lacing their fingers together.

"Howdy." Kaleb grinned. "What are you up to today?"

"Oh, just hoping I could spend some time with my favorite farmer."

"You're sweet. I'm headed into the mines for the day here pretty soon, but nothing could be better for steeling my mood and my nerves than my favorite tailor."

She pouted slightly. "Aw, are you sure?"

"Hey, I gotta get all those interesting crystal formations I give you from _somewhere_ ; also like, materials to make things, but you know. Priorities."

She smiled. "You're sweet. Alright. Just be careful, okay? I'd feel awful if something happened to you because you were getting me something."

"Well, if something does happen—which it won't, I'll be careful—but if it does, rest assured it won't be in the gift retrieval portion."

She laughed. "I don't think that's how it works."

"No, really. The stuff I usually bring you is in the twenty to forty range; the really dicey sections start around eighty or so."

She stared. "Kaleb, you—why are you going down that _far_?!"

"There _has_ to be a bottom." He set his jaw, looking towards the mines. "And I'm gonna _find_ it. Why is everything down there so dangerous? How did it get built? _Why_ did it get built? I _have_ to know, and if no one else is gonna find out then by god I will."

"I.. didn't realize this was so important to you." She pulled him into a hug. "I support you, just.. be safe, Kaleb."

"I will, I promise. As safe as I possibly can. I've got a pretty good strategy; for whatever reason, the walls and floors and ceilings are like, _indestructible_. So I made a big ol' pile of cherry bombs and rigged them up to not need matches." He paused a moment, muttering to himself. "I guess that technically makes them grenades.."

Emily was horrified. "How is _that_ considered _safe_!?"

"The nasties in there only wake up if _I_ get close; not a peep otherwise. Even if a live grenade just landed next to them. And then they stop being asleep, or dormant, or whatever, and start being _dead_. Plus it's way less work to blow up the rocks rather than use a pick, so if I do have to fight I have the energy to defend myself well."

"If you come back missing pieces because you blew yourself up I will _never_ forgive you."

"Noted. Don't worry; I fully intend to be very careful. I'm not just running around cackling and throwing explosives—though I understand the concern, that's very in-character for me—I _am_ deliberate about it so that I don't end up in a bad situation. Also the blast drops off pretty fast, I'd have to be like, standing _on_ it to get seriously hurt."

* * *

Emily stood with her fists on her hips, looking sternly at him. "What did I say, Kaleb."

He ducked his head sheepishly. "In my defense, I'm not missing any bits; it's just that some of my bits have become several smaller bits." His expression shifted to a wry smile. "I was even being careful, Shadow Brutes are just quiet. Snuck up and knocked me forward into the blast radius."

"I can't tell you what to do, but it really makes me upset when I think about the possibility of you getting hurt even worse than this; if this is you being careful, what happens when you have an impulsive moment? ..where will I be then?"

He was quiet a moment. "..I promise I'll do my absolute best, and I have to heal for a bit, so we can talk this out, but.. I _have_ to know, Emily. It's like.. it's a mystery, and the answer is _down_ there, I _know_ it is, it _has_ to be!"

She sighed. "I was afraid you were going to say that. But I won't stop you; I can see how much this means to you. It's a goal that _you_ decided was important; no one else told you."

"I—yeah, that.. that's exactly it, now that you've said it. My whole life I did things because it was what I was supposed to do; but no one in their right mind thinks that going into an abandoned mine and fighting monsters with a slingshot, a sword, and fucking _explosives_ is a valid career path. And neither do I; I'm an _explorer_ , not an adventurer. I'll get to the bottom, probably be vaguely disappointed there's no mystic temple down there, come back, and write a book about it or something. I'll have brought that knowledge kicking and screaming into the light of day; and then _everyone_ can know."

"I'll support you however I can, Kaleb."

"..thanks, Em. That really means the world to me."

* * *

"So.. I found out what the key is for."

"I know that tone; I'm not going to like this, am I."

Kaleb sighed. "..no, no you are not. There's a cave in the Calico Desert; inside is a locked door with a skull on it. I think you can see where this is going."

"Please tell me you didn't go in the door with a literal skull on it."

"I opened it, saw it was a cavern of some sort, then I saw a monster and immediately closed the door again. I wasn't going to go in there without _at least_ telling you, this one's.. it was a goddamn mummy, so that place clearly doesn't muck around. This isn't explorer territory anymore, or even adventurer. This is like, _D &D_ adventurer territory."

"Please, _please_ don't go, Kaleb; I know you have the soul of a hero but I want that soul to stay alive, to stay here with _me_."

"..okay. I won't go. I know how deep the mines are; I know there's a weird cave, and that it has crazy strong monsters, but it's a cave. There's no 'bottom' to find. I'll probably ask Ras about it, since that seems like his area of expertise, but I won't go in myself. It's not worth upsetting you over, you've supported me, and it's time I showed that this goes both ways."

Emily threw her arms around him. "Thank you, I know I'm asking a lot, I know you love your adventures, but I was always so worried you'd get badly hurt."

"Is it okay to still go to the upper levels of the mines for like, their actual intended purpose? Nothing up there is dangerous to me at this point."

"That's fine, Kaleb, I'm okay with that." She pulled away to look at him. "Just no danger, okay? Not on purpose."

"Not on purpose. Thanks, Em."

"I don't know why you're thanking me, to be honest.. I feel like I'm taking part of you away."

"I can still whoop some monsters on the upper levels; no danger, but still satisfying. Besides, the guild wants their numbers thinned anyway, so I can still feel like a hero, just more of a.. municipal one. Like a garbage collector, or a sewer inspector."

"Why _those_?"

"They're heroes too. Society would _not_ function without them, and it's grimy, unforgiving work. But in my case it's still fulfilling, cause I know I'd be keeping all of you safe."

"I'm proud of you, Kaleb."

He was floored. "I—you.. _what_?"

"That's a very noble, mature attitude. I'm proud of you."

He teared up a little. "..thanks, Em."

"Of course, Kaleb."

* * *

"I talked to Ras; he says the caverns go down for miles, and that someone really should go take care of the many things he's sealed away in there over the years. Don't worry; I told him to find someone else."

"Thank you. I know that must have been tempting."

"Conceptually, yes; realistically? I don't really want to fight something a literal wizard felt the need to 'seal away'."

Emily laughed. "Good attitude."

"..it _would_ be pretty rad, but I like being alive, and I _**hate**_ the idea of making you cry, so. Yeah. Not going."

* * *

"Kaleb?"

"What's up?"

"I need you to sit on this for a bit." Emily handed Kaleb a long, folded section of grey fabric, walking back to her desk.

He looked at it, then her. "You need me to.. sit on it."

"Yep!"

"Oh..kay, sure." He stood halfway for a moment to do so. "Though if you wanted to touch my butt you could have just _asked_."

"Oh, I know."

"You.. know?"

"Yeah? That's like, girlfriend privilege number one, isn't it?"

Kaleb was floored. " _Huh!?_ "

Emily turned around slowly with a scared expression. "Do you.. do you regret taking the bouquet?"

"Wait, _that's_ what that means?!"

"What? But you—if you didn't know, why have you been going along with all the different things we've been doing? Our whole energy shifted, you _had_ to have noticed."

"I thought you were just being sweet! I _noticed_ the shift, but you gotta remember Em, I'm denser than a pile of bricks sometimes."

"..oh. I.."

"Oh, son of a _bitch_ , wait, I don't wanna break up or anything! I was just confused, if you think we're dating I absolutely want to keep doing that." He let his head fall in his hands. "Sorry, I just put the pieces together about how that must have sounded to you." He looked up with a sheepish smile. "I didn't know I was accepting your affections as well as the flowers but I'm keeping _both_ of those things, they're mine now, you can't have them back."

Emily sagged, sliding down in her chair. "Ugh, Kaleb, don't scare me like that!" She laughed in relief. "At least life with you is always exciting."

"You really can always look on the bright side, huh? I like that about you. I just like _you_." He lurched suddenly as if to stand, but checked the motion. "Wait, I'm not gonna mess up whatever Feng Shui reason I'm sitting on this for if I get up, right?"

"Actually, could you bring that here? This little emotional moment we just had also helped with _that_ ; you're a soul with a very high emotional intensity, so I wanted to sort of steep the fabric in that." She smiled bashfully. "I was going to make you a cloak to help keep you warm."

He sprang off of the couch, scooping up the fabric and striding over to Emily. He unfolded it once and knelt down to be at chair-height, looping it around the back of Emily's neck to pull her to him, and she gasped. "In that case.." He kissed her softly, lingering for a long moment before resting his forehead against hers. "There. It's only right that there be some of you there too." He blushed. "..and now I can take our first kiss with me to keep me safe from the cold."

She stared at him, wide-eyed, and he began to worry. "Sorry, was that too much..?"

She shook her head rapidly. " _No_!" She kissed him again. "That was the most romantic thing I've _ever heard_ , and you said it to _me_ , like _that_."

"Oh, good, I was worried it was too sappy, which in hindsight is dumb, you just asked me to sit on fabric to transfer like, good vibes, I guess?"

"It _was_ dumb; and it's your intensity. Passion is a powerful thing."

"Then this thing is gonna be stronger than _steel_ , because we just had a _moment_ , there."

"I'm certainly optimistic!"

* * *

"Here!" Emily held out a grey cloak with a deep hood; it had a little gold embroidered fox pattern in the bottom corners, and matching gold stitching. Most importantly, though, rendered in a gorgeous maroon in the center of the back.. was he and Tybalt's coat of arms. It was then he realized that the grey fabric was the same shade as _Tybalt's_ cloak.

Kaleb took it, wide-eyed. "Emily, it's _beautiful_." He examined it in amazement. "Is the clasp _iridium_? How did you even _manage_ that?!"

"Try it on, try it on!" She bounced excitedly, and he laughed.

"Alright, alright! As if I wasn't itching to already." He swung it around his shoulders, letting it billow out behind him dramatically.

"Ooh, fancy!"

"I've owned cloaks before, I learned that one as soon as possible, because I'm incredibly extra." He clipped it shut, and suddenly shot up, back ramrod-straight. "Oh _fuck_ this is _really_ powerful magic, what did you _enchant_ this with?! God _damn_! Where did you _learn_ to enchant like this?!"

She startled. "What?! I didn't _enchant_ it, I just made it and made sure not to let any of the energy seep out."

"Well, then the only explanation I've got is the power of love, which is so unbelievably cheesy but I really cannot overstate that this is _leagues_ beyond anything I've recovered in the mines."

"..Can I try it on? I have a theory."

He unhooked it, walking over and swinging it off his shoulders and onto hers. "Here you are, my dear." He fastened it, and looked at her expectantly.

"Alright, that's what I expected."

He blinked. "Huh?"

"It's only magic for you. It's all the things we mentioned, and it was made with love; for _you_." Emily took a half step back as he began to tear up, sniffling. "Oh god, what's wrong?!"

"I'm coming to terms with the fact that if it's like that because you made it with love, I cannot possibly fathom how much you must love me to produce an enchantment like that _by accident_."

"Oh, _Kaleb_." She took the cloak off, trying to mimic the swing he did, with moderate success. She hooked it around his neck, and her hair stood on end. "Oh, wow, I see what you mean." She smiled. "Good. Than I can feel at ease knowing my love will keep you safe."

"God, no kidding; I have no inclination to test it, because this thing is gorgeous, and I want to keep it as nice as possible, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was _bulletproof_." There was a twinkle in Emily's eye. "Oh no, I know that look, what— _OW_." She punched him in the shoulder, and he rubbed at it. "Babe, _ow_."

"Mystery solved!" She declared triumphantly.

He couldn't help but laugh. "Yeah, alright. I can accept that."

"Ooh." She leaned over. "Hey! Abigail!"

"Oh, _hell_ no, Abigail hits _really_ hard."

Abigail bounced over. "What's up guys? Damn, Kaleb! That's the coolest cape I've ever seen!"

"Cloak," Emily and Kaleb both corrected.

"Is there a difference?"

"Capes are shorter; generally they only come down to the waist." Emily explained. "But anyway, I need you to punch Kaleb in the shoulder for me—"

Abigail's fist shot out, nailing him in the arm. She sucked a breath in through her teeth, cradling her hand to her chest. "Mother _fucker_."

"—but not too hard, because it might hurt." Emily finished.

Kaleb stared at his arm, then at Abigail. "Holy shit."

"Yeah, 'holy shit'; what is that thing _made_ of?!"

"Wool. And love." There was a brief pause. "..And embroidery floss, but that's not really _structural_."

"Yeah, okay, sure."

Kaleb shook his head. "For once, we are actually not messing with you. She had me sit on the bolt of fabric to 'absorb my emotional intensity', and then we had a moment, and then we had _another_ moment, which involved our first kiss, and then she made it with the explicit intent of keeping me warm and safe, and you _know_ there's magic in the valley."

"Oh my god are you telling me you literally sewed you guys' first kiss into a fucking magic cape."

"Cloak."

" _Whatever_."

"Hey, at least care for this specific cloak, I wouldn't call your flute a tinwhistle."

"Those aren't the same at _all_ —oh, that's your point." She was quiet a moment. "Okay, fair. I'll keep it mind for your sweet magic cloak."

"Thank you." He leaned in slightly, peering at her hand with an expression of concern. "Is your hand okay? You hit really hard, as a general rule, but I didn't feel that like, at _all_."

"I.. Think? I'm gonna have Harvey take a look to be sure, cause I wasn't really trying to have good form; I expected _you_ to be the thing that lost that trade."

"Yeah, so did I, cause Emily can punch me no problem."

"Oh my god it really is the Power of Love, I cannot _believe_ how cheesy you two are." She grit her teeth. "Yeah, I'm gonna go, if this is broken I want to know sooner rather than later."

"That's fair. Sorry about that!"

"Not your fault, bud."

* * *

Abigail laid her forehead on Robin's shoulder. "I thought I'd be okay, I thought I would be able to handle it if they got together, it's been more than a year, but _god_."

Robin held her gently, rocking back and forth. "I know, Abi. It sounds like you handled it beautifully."

"..what if she really does love him more than I do? I never did anything like _that_ for him."

"Didn't you say you two had a shouting match in the clinic that ended with you throwing a bouquet into his lap, and he _immediately_ backed down?"

"I mean, he said he wasn't going to apologize, and we kept arguing for a bit, but yeah, the shouting was over.. But how is that—"

"Kaleb is the most stubborn human being on the planet; he _never_ backs down. _Ever_."

"That's not true, I can think of a whole bunch of times—"

"Name _one_ that wasn't to you. And I don't mean realizing he was in the wrong and admitting it, I mean 'I don't like this but I'll agree anyway,'" Robin clarified.

"I.." Abigail was silent for a long time. "..Oh my _god_."

"You are literally the only person I have _ever_ seen him concede ground to. He cares about your opinions; but what's more relevant to your earlier concern is what that says about how he views your feelings for him. He knew you weren't trying to take advantage of him; so he was willing to make concessions. He knew you only wanted the best for him."

"..Thanks, Robin. I needed to hear that."

"Anytime, Abigail. We have to stick together. But, uh.. I do have a request."

"What is it?"

"I suspect if we loop again, Emily is going to Remember next time."

"..You think it's him loving you? But then why would _you_ Remember? No offense, but like.."

"I think it's loving _him_."

"Wait, do you..?!"

"Not.. quite. When he.. god.. when he.." Robin swallowed. ".. _yeah_ ; I was going through the roughest part of my marriage, and I'd briefly considered the _idea_ of him as a person that could be my type."

"Then why didn't you Remember when I did?"

"Because you married him, I would have just dismissed the feelings, presumably; I don't exactly remember. Last time.."

"..Yeah."

"Anyway, I wanted to ask you to keep it to yourself that I Remember. It was hard enough telling you that just now, and I don't want to explain it again.. plus there would be no gap from him being _hers_ to potentially dealing with _that_ and I don't know how she'd _respond_."

"I understand. We'll figure out a way to explain how you Remembered."

"..Thanks, Abigail."

"Hey, we gotta stick together, like you said."

* * *

"Hey, Kaleb..?"

"What's up, love?"

"I've been thinking.. do you still want to go into those caverns?"

"The Skull Cave? I mean, it at least sounds like it'd have some really interesting stuff in there, if I could deal with the monsters. Who knows what kind of historic or magic artifacts could be in there."

"You're still very excited, I see, but you don't want to make me feel bad."

"..yeah. That's pretty much it."

"I think.. I think you should go. Now that you have my cloak. I'll be there with you, now, and I know my love will protect you."

"..really? Are you.. are you _sure_? I really, _really_ don't want to hurt you, Em. You mean the _world_ to me."

"And you to me; which is why I think you should go. I can see it in your eyes, in your _soul_. There's mystery and adventure out there, and you want to be the one to figure it out."

"Yeah. You're right, I do. Speaking of which, I'm about to go to the Calico Desert to visit the trader and Sandy; do you want to come along, or send something with me?"

"Sure, I'll tag along. It'll be a nice change of pace, and I haven't seen Sandy in a long time."

The two made their way to the bus stop, and boarded. Pam nodded briefly, and they were off.

When they arrived, Kaleb immediately went to the tent by the bus stop. "Hey."

"Hello! The usual, I presume?"

"Wow, Kaleb, you have a usual?"

"Oh! The blue hair! You must be the woman he speaks of so dearly."

Emily squeaked, and Kaleb laughed. "Yeah, that's her. And the usual, but I've got about thirty this time."

The trader's eyebrows went up. "Oh my! What's the occasion?"

"No occasion. I just like spoiling her." He winked at Emily, who started.

"You're buying things for _me_?"

"Where do you think I get all that fabric from? It's good that you're here, actually; pick out ten you like."

"Ten _bolts_?!"

"Yep. I've gotten real good at finding gems in the mine, and this particular merchant—who you may recognize from the night market—wants aquamarine. Three chunks buys me—and by that I really mean you—a bolt of fabric. Everybody wins."

"I _thought_ you looked familiar.." She looked over the assortment of colors with wide eyes.

The trader laughed. "You certainly know your lady's preferences."

"Oh man, just wait until you see the cloak she made me. I've never worn it here cause it's a desert, but I will be sometime here soon. It's _incredible_."

She blushed. "Kaleeb." She covered her face.

"It is!"

She picked out her fabric, opting to leave two on 'reserve', since she was hoping to find a particular color, and was willing to wait since she had so much already to work with. "Thank you so much!"

"Thank _you_ , my friends! Pleasure doing business with you, as always!"

"So; to Sandy?"

"One stop first. I think I solved that riddle I was talking about, the dwarven one. If I'm right.." They walked for a little ways, passing the tent, and three ancient pillars came into view.

"Oh wow; I had no idea this was here!"

"If I'm wrong, I'm about to look like a dramatic idiot; if I'm _right_?" He walked to the center of the triangle formed by the pillars, holding a prismatic shard towards the sky.

There was a blinding flash of light, and a ringing sound filled the air, a sound unlike any they had ever heard. When Emily had blinked away the spots from her vision, she gasped. Kaleb was still holding his hand dramatically to the sky, but now he was clutching a midnight purple sword.

"Oh, _hell_ yeah, _nailed_ it." He gave it a few experimental swings, eyes widening. "What is this thing _made_ of?!" He tapped the flat of the blade against his boot, then tapped a little harder, then gave it a solid _thwack!_

The blade hummed slightly as it vibrated, and Kaleb stared at it. Emily tilted her head. "Is that.. good?"

"..I've never seen anything like this, _ever_." He looked at her. "This thing makes that red bladed sword I got from Marlon look like a cast iron letter opener, this is like a step beyond _iridium_ ; the riddle said 'the galaxies will heed your cry', but I didn't expect it to be made of _actual_ stardust or whatever this thing is."

"..well, mister hero, it looks like you've got a sword to match your cloak."

"..Yeah; yeah it does. Holy _shit_." He looked up at her. "I really do kinda feel like a real-life folk hero now; legendary sword made of a mysterious unknown metal, billowing nigh-indestructible magic cloak emblazoned with my family coat of arms.. Like, that's straight out of a myth or a fairy tale. But it's _me_."

"My boyfriend, the dashing adventurer." Emily giggled. "It's funny; I never thought that would be my type, but here you are. You're silly as ever, even after graduating to full-time hero."

"Nah, I'm not going full-time. The benefits aren't good enough anyway; not enough family leave. What if my son gets sick while I'm questing in distant lands, Emily? I have to be there for him."

She laughed. "Yeah, this is what I mean! I'm glad that you're just still.. you."

"I can't be anyone else, you know? I do all this because I want to add value to the world, so being anything else seems just.. ridiculous." He looked at Emily for a moment, considering. "..hey, you wanna see the cave?"

"Huh?! _Me_!?"

Emily looked panicked, and he held up a hand in a placating gesture. "Hey, you don't have to, I just figured I'd offer. I do have a sword with me now, and it's a hell of a sword."

"..do you think I should?"

"Depends; would you feel better or worse seeing what I'm getting into? Personally I'd rather know even if it was terrifying as opposed to not knowing at all."

"..You're right. I would prefer to know what you'll be getting into."

"Then let's go; right this way."

The approached the cave, and Emily drifted to cling to his arm. "I'm getting a really bad energy from this place."

"Oh, believe me, it gets worse. We can stop if you want, once I open that door this feeling is gonna go up like, times ten, that place is practically _made_ of bad vibes."

"And you didn't think to mention that?!"

"I'm immune by now! I'm aware of it, but I don't _notice_ it; does that make sense?"

"I suppose." She hugged his arm tighter. "I trust you. You'll protect me."

"You're damn right I will." There was steel in his voice, and the way he carried himself had completely changed; this was the hero, not the farmer. The stopped in front of the door. "This is it."

"The skull is a lot smaller than I'd imagined."

"You were thinking like a whole door kinda situation, rather than 'this is the bathroom for skeletons, the ladies' room is over there'?"

She burst out laughing. "It totally does look like a little bathroom sign, you're _right_."

"Alright. Serious time, though. You ready?"

She nodded. "Ready." He unlocked the door, pushing it open, and she was immediately hit with the most powerful cursed energy she'd ever experienced. It wasn't ten times worse; it was a _hundred_ times worse. "Oh god, Kaleb, close the door, I can't do this." He immediately closed the door, and the feeling slowly ebbed away.

"Sorry, I lowballed it, didn't I?"

"..yeah; how can you _stand_ that?"

"Had a run in with a bad medication that made me suicidal, and I have pretty severe depression. If that can't kill me, no amount of bad vibes ever will. If god wants me dead, the fucker can come down here and kill me personally."

"Oh wow, this is a whole different side of you."

"Yeah, sorry. I get kind of intense."

"I wouldn't want you to be like this all the time, but I think it's interesting."

"Long as it's not off-putting, I'm happy. Wanna head home, or you still wanna visit Sandy?"

"We're not gonna try again?"

"We can if you want, but I can pretty much guarantee the same thing'll happen. I still _feel_ it, I just ignore it. You just learn to coexist with it, I guess. But you've got way more positive energy than I do, so I'm willing to bet it's worse for you."

"Then yeah, let's go home. I think I need snuggles after that, and Sandy will understand."

"And I'm more than happy to provide." He held out a hand, and she took it.

"My hero," she sighed dramatically, batting her lashes at him.

"Hey, be careful, wouldn't want it to go to my head."

Her expression and tone didn't change. "My hero who's also a little _shit_."

" _God_ I love you."

* * *

"So, mister farmer; what's the plan for the next spring?"

"Well, it's been three years, and I'm really getting a handle on things. But there's still one more thing I've got my sights set on."

"Ooh, what would that be?"

"It's a secret." Kaleb looked down at Emily, shooting her a wink. "You'll just have to wait and see."

She pouted. "Meanie! Why would you tell me there _was_ something then?"

"Uh, because I'm a little shit? We've established this, dear."

She snorted, leaning against his shoulder. "I guess that's true."

They were quiet a few moments, sitting in front of the fire. "Hey.. Emily?"

"What is it?" She cocked her head to the side.

"Will you come over for New Year's Eve? It's been three years, like I said, and you know I've got that thing with threes.. It just.. it feels like you should be there."

She leaned up to kiss him on the cheek. "I'd love to, Kaleb."

"Cool." He grinned like an idiot, and Emily giggled. "Cool."

"Very eloquent."

"You know me, Pelican Town's resident vocalist."

* * *

Emily was curled against his side, idly petting Tybalt in her lap. He smiled down at her, and she cocked her head to the side. "What is it, Kaleb?"

"I just love you. Can't a man admire his girlfriend?"

She blushed. "You sweetheart.."

The news anchor on the TV called out the start of the countdown. " _Ten!_ "

"Emily?"

"Yes?"

" _Seven!_ "

He gently cupped her cheek in his palm. "May I kiss you?"

" _Four!_ "

She nodded slightly, cheeks flushed. "..You may," she whispered.

" _Two!_ "

He leaned in, their lips meeting as the countdown ended..

" _Zero! HAPPY NEW YEAR!_ "

And then Emily started awake in her bed, three years earlier.


End file.
